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"Johnny Vander Meer achieved baseball immortality in 1938 by pitching two consecutive no-hitters, a feat never replicated in baseball history. The first team that he beat was the Boston Bees, the second team: the Brooklyn Dodgers.
His second no-hitter was the first night baseball game ever at Ebbets Field. The architect of that night was Larry Mac Phail, who originally brought night baseball to the major leagues in Cincinnati during the 1935 season. Mac Phail added an extra attraction to the night’s festivities by having 1936 Olympic gold medal winner Jesse Owens race against a horse and another Dodger player. Owens star had risen during the Olympics, and now 2 years later, his opponents were given head starts. Owens lost both races.
Vander Meer’s feat has never been duplicated, and probably never will. The closest anybody ever came was in 1947 by a Cincinnati pitcher named Blackwell, who almost did it to the same 2 teams; but lost the record in the second game when the Dodgers got two hits in the ninth inning. Vander Meer’s achievement nicknamed him the “Dutch Master,” in reference to Rembrandt’s famous masterpieces. However, Vander Meer claimed that neither no-hitter was actually his best game. In 1946 he pitched a game in Ebbets Field which resulted in a 16 inning tie, 1-1. He considered this game his most perfect performance."